Country artist Shane Gamble wants his songs to tell the story of the American everyman.

Gamble, who scored a top 40 hit on the Billboard Country charts with his single “Beautiful Work,” will play Saturday, May 12, at the sold-out Bonanza Extravaganza in Hagerstown.

“WFRE in Frederick, and 104.7 WAYZ in Greencastle, they played ‘Beautiful Work’ which was the lead single off of American Heart,” said Gamble over the phone from his home in Frederick, Md. “That went to 38 on Billboard.”

Gamble’s music has also seen success on the radio.

“I had a song called ‘Turn My Way’ that broke on Sirius XM the Highway,” he said. “It went to No. 1 on their charts.”

After the success of “Turn My Way,” Gamble began work on his album, “American Heart.”

“I went down to Nashville (Tenn.) and made a record; that was called ‘American Heart,’” he said. “That was the follow up to ‘Turn My Way.’ I made it with a who’s who of Nashville songwriters. Andrew Dorff and Deric Ruttan helped write.”

After the success of “Turn My Way” and “American Heart,” Gamble invested the money he made into his own record label and studio.

“I basically took the money I made out of ‘Turn My Way’ and opened up a record label,” he said. “I burned a lot of cash. I own my own recording studio and publishing company in Maryland; I have a lot of great relationships with artists. I shop around my songs a lot. Producing is something that I’m really getting into now.”

Gamble has been in love with music from an early age; listening to his father’s records from when he was a boy.

“I just love listening to my dad’s folk records, from Bob Dylan to The Beach Boys to The Beatles,” he said. “I was obsessed with listening to records, singing along, and learning all the words.”

When the MTV craze hit in the ’80s, Gamble was watching and taking notes.

“I would watch music videos, and say, ‘Man, I really want to learn guitar’,” he said. “So I started taking guitar lessons. I had friends that wrote and performed their own songs, and that was so appealing to me.

As a teenager, Gamble began to write his own songs.

“By the time I was 15 I was writing some pretty horrible songs, but loving it,” he said. “I wasn’t even really telling stories at the time; I was just putting together lyrics that go together phonically. I tried to write lyrics and melodies over simple chord progressions. Probably not much has changed, but I hope I’ve gotten a little better at it.”

Gamble is influenced by classic country and Americana artists.

“I am a huge, huge fan of the late Tom Petty,” he said. “I like Bruce Springsteen to Keith Urban; Blake Shelton. I’m kind of a mix between American rock and country. I love an artist called Chris Whitley, unfortunately, he passed away a long time ago. I like Wilco a lot. I hover between the Americana rock and country world. Skip Ewing, I grew up listening to him. He’s a straight-up country kind of guy. Johnny Cash, the real storytellers. I try to be in the same vein story-wise, fictional or real.”

Gamble will release a new single and album in the coming months.

“‘Love Is A Road’ is coming out on May 22,” he said. “I wrote that with Phil Vassar at his estate. The single will go out to radio the beginning of June. The full album comes out in early fall. It’s going to be like 14 songs. I produced, wrote, and mixed the album. It’s heavier than ‘American Heart.’ It’s more raw and more groove and guitar oriented, with deeper stories. It’s a grittier record. The new record is differently radio friendly, but it’s definitely heavier. It’s a very visceral record. I think people are really going to relate to this record.”

Gamble is looking forward to playing at the Bonanza Extravaganza.

“For me, the live show doesn’t necessarily have to be what the record is,” he said. “When you see the band at the Bonanza Extravaganza, it’s an event that takes you somewhere. Everybody comes out to have a good time; it’s a very high energy thing. There are a lot of guitars and good vocal melodies. It’s just good songs man.”

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The Bonanza Extravaganza is sold out. Guest tickets are still available for those who have purchased a main ticket. Go to BonanzaExtravaganza.com.